Seventeen Months

While some seventeen month olds

melt on the ground in a toddler tantrum,

our sweet boy laid down in the middle of

Billy Graham Library to get a better view

of the enormous Christmas tree.

This season is one of wonder.

To see it through the eyes of a seventeen month old

makes it even more wondrous.

Trees with lights "on", 

"balls" decorating the trees.

"Tanta" saying "Ho, ho, ho."

"No, no, no" becoming a favorite word.

Touching the ornaments,

dancing to a musical ornament

over and over and over again.

Laughing delicious belly laughs.

Eating too many Christmas cookies.

Wonder-filled.

Wonderful.

A Visit with Santa

You have to put your name on the nice list.

Santa will check it twice though.

{First year penning his own name} 

 Pretty successful!  

No tears, though Anderson was not particularly impressed.

{Alekzander later pointed out that we didn't tell Santa what Anderson wanted.

Luckily, I think the old guy has a special connection with babies,

and knows exactly what they want.}

Telling Santa his Christmas wish :: a red scooter.

Santa initially heard "red skittles," but we were able to clarify.  

And to clear up any confusion, Alekzander drew a very clear picture of his wish.

Incredibly proud Mommy & Daddy moment - 

Alekzander flipped his paper over and drew out his Christmas wish ...

{unprompted & unassisted}

Apparently there were no red crayons available 

to add detail to the scooter, so on his own, he spelled out R-E-D. 

{Yay Mrs. Meaghan & TK}

Mailing his note

Merry Christmas Cards

Five!

Sweetest boy. 
We are so proud of you.
Proud of your bravery this year - facing school, making friends, branching out.
Proud of your kindness every day - to your brother, to your doggy, to your friends.
Proud of your creativity - building car washes out of wood blocks, making bathtub milkshakes.
Proud of your intellect - endless questions, counting, writing, spelling your favorite food "BL-BRE" and your name.
Most of all, we are proud of your heart.

Instead of presents from your friends, we asked for books for one of our favorite non-profits, Rohr Rockstars.  Instead of tears or whining, you said, "OK" and even posed for a picture holding the heavy pile.

Even though you are starting to rough-house with your brother, you always make sure he is okay - even after the accidental bump.  You know what what he needs before we do.  You like to touch his face and talk to him in the sweetest voice.

On your special day, you chose to run errands with Mommy and picked out two Christmas presents for children who would not have a Christmas otherwise.  Your heart shined through when you picked out a present you would have liked to keep for yourself but wanted another little boy to enjoy it.

At dinner each night, you add something to the blessing.  You, alone, are a blessing, but your prayers are always thoughtful and selfless.  You thank God for your family, our safety, and you remember to pray for your uncle specifically remembering the place where he is deployed.

You are the best snuggler and freely hand out "I love yous" when they are needed most or - even better - just because.  You have so much love in your heart; you are loved so much. Adored beyond words.

Happy 5th birthday, big guy. 
We love you!

Party Prep

Posing in front of the movie posters that Daddy drew

for Alekzander's Planes: Fire & Rescue viewing party.

The party plan :: 

Invite 13 TK classmates for an after-dinner, drop-off, movie-viewing, 

pajama-wearing, lovey-toting birthday party on a Friday night.

Simple refreshments.  Zero decorations.  Toys/distractions hidden.

Easy and fun.

We followed through with the Planes theme with a few special, early birthday presents

{Planes: Fire & Rescue movie, Planes sleeping bag, Planes: Fire & Rescue pajamas}

and had to test out the goods and the projector before Alekzander's friends arrived.

Brother had to be in on the pre-party action too.

Elmer Fudd's Adventure

A chilly evening called for a short family walk 

to check out our new neighborhood bridge.

The cool weather brought out an old hand-me-down hat - 

a little too small for our growing boy.

The mission was successful and the littlest adventurer exercised 

his independence and walked around half the pond - 

looking very Elmer Fudd-esque.

Such a cutie - with such a big personality.

Love this little ham!

Sixteen Months

Big, busy, babbling.

At 16 months, you continue to be so fun and such a blessing.

You look like a little man.  Strong, stable, and sturdy.

You are always on the move.  So busy.  You move with a purpose.

Stacking, throwing, chasing, playing.

You have so much to say though pointing and grunting

often ends in frustration for all parties involved.

"Double day" is a favorite phrase though the meaning is unclear,

but you have taught the three of us to say it, many times throughout the day.

You've turned into a Daddy's boy this last month, 

and while that makes Mama's heart a little sad,

Daddy's heart soars with pride.

You're pretty fearless, really funny, and perfectly you.

Happy 16 months, Anderson!

Life Changing

Sometimes - all the time - it is so good to get outside of yourself ... outside of your comfort zone... outside of your head... away from your worries... by serving others.  

For the past few years, I have been so proud to be part of Rohr Rockstars - serving on the board, but also being a cheerleader for new programming and new ideas;  I am along for the ride, and the ride is fast, exciting, and life changing.  

With a new programming model in place, Rohr Rockstars partnered with Grier's Gallery to create the Artists in Residence {AiR}program; a monthly art education program that gets at the heart of what is important in life ::  finding a passion and sharing it with the world.  The first AiR artists had their work showcased at an art gallery in Uptown Charlotte - and a rocking reception/gallery opening.  To be sure that we could be part of this amazing event, we initiated a family date night.  Our time together - and the inaugural Grier's Gallery installation celebration - was a great success.  My heart is  so full!

 We'll pretend that Anderson was as amazed as I was!

THE Message Is In The Chalk

Looking for enCOURAGEment during rough times I turn to The Bible.  I found some much needed encouragement in Joshua 1:9 and decided to add it to our wall chalkboard in our entryway.

Have I not commanded you?
Be strong and courageous.
Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged,
for the Lord your God will be with you
wherever you go.
~Joshua 1:9

I had heard this verse before, and it was powerful writing God's words, and despite the fact that I had it memorized by the time the chalk hit the wall... the message didn't really hit me until the end.

Suddenly it was clear... THE message was in the chalk.  Not the chalk written on the wall... those words served for comfort and encouragement... the TRUE message I needed was in the actual piece (now pieces) of chalk that wrote the message.

To write these words I found a plethora of jumbo sized kids' sidewalk chalk and a tiny scrap of thin white chalk for the smaller letters.  The scrap ran out partway and I was briefly discouraged that I would have to use a jumbo piece to finish until I found it.  It... was a perfect, untouched, fresh new piece of thin white chalk.  The excitement of using a brand new piece of chalk may be a throwback to childhood, when we actually had real chalkboards in the classrooms, but something fired in me when I found that perfect piece.  I held it with pride and thought of how great my terrible handwriting would look with such an unblemished piece.  That is until I tried writing with it.  I struggled to write 'afraid' and 'discouraged' not because they were hard to bear with but because the chalk just wasn't working.  This piece of chalk that I thought was so great just wasn't doing its purpose.  I needed to share this message (God's word) and this unblemished piece of chalk was doing a poor job.

An outside force (read as curious 4.5yr old hands) soon swept through and accidentally shattered the chalk.  After briefly mourning the loss of the perfect unbroken chalk, I decided to pick up the scraps and finish the verse.  I didn't think much about how the chalk now worked perfectly and simply continued to finish the verse.

It wasn't until I lifted the chalk from the wall that I realized the message I needed to learn was in that actual piece (now pieces) of chalk.  We may think we have it all together and are doing just fine.  Our chalk may seem well put together and perfect.  But God (the master artist, author, and creator) might not be able to use us properly until we are broken.  In our brokenness we find meaning, we find beauty, and we (hopefully) can help write His message on the wall for others to see and hear.

His message is in my brokenness... His message is in the chalk.

Evolution of a Costume

Though I do not sew, I was determined to create a 

Martin Kratt/Blue Cheetah costume for Alekzander.

He had been planning for this since early summer,

and he has an eye for detail, so I knew he would be my biggest critic!

Thanks to Mia's long distance creativity, bargain shopping, and knitting skills,

we pieced together something perfect for our little Kratt fan.

Matching blue sweatshirt and pants, a black t-shirt, blue fabric, 

Heat 'N Bond, hand-knit ears and tail, a laminated creature power disc,

some black face paint, and a lot of love, a hot iron, and a little muscle made it happen.

Daddy gets credit for the final detail - a must have Creature Pod Communicator.

And the last touch :: {delivered on Halloween at 4PM} a 'real' cheetah 

for activating CHEETAH POWER!

Bungee Run Fun

This kiddo is getting big and brave...

and is wide open.

He was possibly the littlest

on the bungee run,

but the fun was big!

 

Anderson wanted in on the action, too.